Title: Research Associate Professor, Program Director, Veterans and the Arts Initiative, College of Visual and Performing Arts, George Mason University
Education: B.A., music, George Mason University; masters in music, University of Alberta; Ph.D., music, University of Alberta
Age: 39
Mentors: Family, doctoral advisor Dr. Regula Qureshi, supervisor Dr. Rick Davis and Dr. Theresa Allison
Words of encouragement/wisdom: “Honesty, kindness, and mutual respect lead to meaningful work.”
Dr. Niyati Dhokai grew up in a three-generation household. Her parents and grandparents, immigrants from India, shared the visual, literary and musical arts with Dhokai and her sister. Their home was filled with love and the sounds of Gujarat, their familial home.
Music is, in Dhokai’s words, a “cultural bridge,” something she could experience every day in her home and also at school. Through music, Dhokai was able to develop a sense of belonging in different communities, and she became fascinated with the way that music could connect with a cultural identity.
During graduate school, she began to focus in on the intersection of music and health and the way in which music can help build a community. Her pursuit led her to George Mason University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts and the Hylton Performing Arts Center, where she is now the leader of the Veterans and the Arts Initiative.
Her first student was a veteran recovering from a traumatic brain injury who wanted to learn the violin. The ways in which that student learned, the time spent teaching her and then watching her reintegrate into the community after her injury all had a tremendous impact on Dhokai. She asked if there were more veterans interested in studying music or the arts — and there were.
Dhokai has now created programming that serves thousands of veterans and their families annually through performances and exhibitions. But what she does is not music therapy, said Dhokai.
“This is supporting a return to appreciating arts in a community space and pursuing [the veteran’s] own interests,” said Dhokai. “This is a practice-based and service-based opportunity to engage in community arts programming.”
The results are as varied as the veterans themselves, said Dhokai, but there have been some standout findings: the veterans who participate show an increased interest in learning new skills and an increased social connectedness and wellbeing. These results are “all really promising for folks in transition, going from military life to civilian life, or going through postinjury transitions,” said Dhokai.
